December 06, 2009
- snazzy (adjective)
- \SNAZZ-ee\
- What does it mean?
- : attractive in a flashy way
- How do you use it?
- Lucy opened the photo album to an old picture of her dad dressed for his junior prom in a bright yellow tuxedo complete with a snazzy silk bowtie.
- Are you a word wiz?
Nobody knows the origin of the word "snazzy." But we do know that it was first used in the 1930s. Which of the following words do you think was first used around the same time?
The earliest evidence we have of "jittery" comes from the early 1930s, the same time period in which the first evidence of "snazzy" appeared. The 1930s were a productive time for the coining, or making up, of new words. Our evidence says that "hairdo" was first used in the 1930s, along with "okeydoke," "double date," and "bagel." Words that are coined during a given time often give us a clue as to what was going on in society. Other words from the 1930s that are a kind of time capsule ("time capsule" is also from the 1930s!) include "jitterbug," "blitzkrieg," "Disneyesque," and "hiring hall."
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